Helping Others Discover Their Potential

Submitted by: Sister Kristine Saunders, Archives

Tai Matalolo helps others discover their potential while at the Polynesian Cultural Center.

Meet the man who can see around corners. He has the ability to see how the principles learned while obtaining his BYU-Hawaii degree in Supply Chain and Business Management can be used when working at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Please meet Poutai Tino Matalolo, Employment Manager in the Human Resources Department.

Tai is one of 12 siblings. He was born in American Samoa and attended Fagaitua High School, “Home of the Mighty Vikings.” When his mother needed medical attention, Tai came to Hawaii with her. She got better and went home to Samoa and Tai stayed in Hawaii to study and work. Tai had completed six months of study at American Samoa Community College before coming to Hawaii, then was called to serve as a missionary in the Hawaii Honolulu Mission.

In school, Tai liked studying English but liked the problem-solving and challenges presented by math. He liked numbers. His determination to learn took him to a Supply Chain and Business Management degree at BYU-Hawaii. The question then became, “How does Supply Chain Management lead a person to a career in Human Resources?” Answer: The degree gave Tai the ability to see around corners. According to Tai, “A degree in Supply Chain and Business Management taught me how to run a business and use resources wisely. In Human Resources, our capital is people and the customers are our employees. HR provides the leadership and acts as a mediator between the customers, employees, and the company, Polynesian Cultural Center.” With great problem-solving and listening skills, Tai has become very good at what he does.

Tai started working at the Polynesian Cultural Center in the kitchen preparing a product that, at the time, was called Pineapple Delight. He and a team of 3-4 other workers prepared in 2-3 hours between 1,000 and 1,500 Pineapple Delights per day. A year later, Tai changed jobs and worked as a runner restocking shelves for 6 different concession stores throughout the center. He has worked as a cashier and a floater whose job was to contact people in the crowd to sell them something. He then became a supervisor whose job was to watch all things considered concessions in the shops and night show. Tai has made life-long friendships with fellow employees at the Polynesian Cultural Center.

One thing Tai learned about himself while on his mission is that he is a good listener. He likes interacting with people, learning about their interests, and solving problems. He said, “The difference between operations and HR is that operations are fast-paced. You meet and interact with people with one-liners. HR is more intimate. You work with people one on one. I like to take time with people to learn about them and where their goals and interests lie before we talk about problems. People who come to HR looking for help need to know that they are in a safe place. My job is to support the employee while maintaining the standards and reputation of the company.”

Not every case brought to HR has a happy ending. “Ninety percent of the time you work with people who inspire you.” The culture outside the Polynesian Cultural Center is “different than the culture inside. We are truly one ‘Ohana. We work with good people and are taught by great leaders. People are what we are all about.” His motto is, “Surround yourself with good people and become one of those good people yourself.”

The three words he would use to describe himself are hilarious, listener, and romantic. Among friends, Tai is known as the funny one. Not many people know he is a romantic. He wears his heart on his sleeve and loves a good love story, especially about friends who have found true love. The Polynesian Cultural Center is about discovery. Tai Matalolo helps people discover their potential for love, life, and family.

“Free in 3” offer is back!

Submitted by: Eric E. Workman, Vice President & CMO

The Polynesian Cultural Center is excited to welcome back guests!

The “Free in 3” offer is back. This offer allows any guest who has purchased a ticket that included Islands of Polynesia admission to return to the Islands any time the Islands are open for up to three days after their original day of visit. This offer has been available for many months but we wanted to make sure our whole PCC ‘Ohana knew and understood more about this offer.

Why do we do have this offer?

For decades the number one complaint from PCC guests (which is not usually a real complaint about most but more of a comment) has been something like, “We could not see and do everything in the short day.” This is often followed by, “Why don’t you open earlier?” We respond by letting guests know that most of our team members are students and they have classes in the mornings. We then invite them to return anytime in the next three days to experience what they missed. When we started the “Free in 3” it immediately calmed those concerns even though we only have about 10 or 20 people per day actually take us up on the offer. Again, this offer is only for the Islands not the Hā show, Luau, or Gateway.

Do guests need to have a reservation to come back?

No, in fact, we prefer they do not call our Reservations Center and it is not available online. Guests just go to the Ticket Office with their old tickets and a valid photo ID (we need to make sure they are not passing on their tickets to someone else). Ticketing will reissue an Islands Only ticket for the day.

What if the Islands are sold out?

As we only get about 10-20 guests a day taking advantage of this offer, “Free in 3” passes are counted separately from the standard Islands max count. This way we can keep our commitment to those who have visited just recently and it allows us to promote this strong sales point to people considering buying a ticket to PCC.

What if they can only come back in 4 days?

Our Reservations Agents are “exceptional Ambassadors of Aloha” and seek daily to “Wow” guests–they will be a bit flexible. “Free in 3” has a catchy ring to it but it is not a strict limit. We just don’t want people coming back in weeks, months, or even their next visit and trying to get tickets for free.

Do we want guests to come back?

YES!!! We want them to come back so we can have another opportunity to “Wow” them. We want them to come back and enjoy our fun new concession offerings and/or eat at our Hukilau Marketplace or Pounders. We want them to have such a great time that they come back every time they are on Island.

Thank you for getting the word out, “Free in 3” is back.

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